doing tomorrow night?”
“Saturday?” He had planned on calling his friends and maybe going to Trixx again. But the only reason to do that was to get laid, so… “Saturday night would be fine.”
“Pick you up at eight?”
Skyler nodded and gave Keith his address. This felt weird.
Was this what heteros felt before a first date? All fluttery inside?
He watched Keith climb into his truck, then turned toward his white VW Bug and hit the button on his key to unlock it.
He got home fast. He speed-dialed Sidney to tell her and she squealed appropriately. He joked and laughed with her as he always did, but when he clicked off the phone, he chewed his lip.
Pick-ups in bars didn’t exactly prepare him for the subtlety of a date.
§ § §
Early Saturday evening, he showered. He chose his clothes carefully, going with a Hugo Boss gray sweater to match his eyes and khaki slacks, hoping that it wasn’t a fancier place Keith had in mind. As he brushed his long platinum bangs off his face, he wondered if Keith planned on paying for dinner. If you asked, you paid, right? But that was weird, too. That wouldn’t feel right. “What’s the matter with me?” And why wasn’t his hair cooperating? “Any red-blood American gay boy would love having a sugar daddy. Why not let him pay?”
Because it felt odd. He’d always paid his own way; helping to support his mom at home once he was of age and paying for his own schooling. It didn’t feel right letting someone else foot the bill now. He’d just tell Keith. Yeah. They’d split the bill. That was only right.
Although it did feel nice that someone might want to do this Foxe hunt 25
for him.
The doorbell. He straightened his baby-fine hair one more time and went to the door. When he pulled it open, he remembered why he had first thought of Keith as a Walking Wet Dream.
He was wearing a maroon dress shirt under his black leather jacket. His shirt was open at the collar revealing a tan triangle of skin and curly dark hair. He still had that sexy one day of beard growth and he was looking at Skyler with those captivating eyes and smiling lips. And he smelled good, too. What was that?
Unforgivable ?
Keith measured Skyler up and down with a grin. “You look great.”
“Thanks,” he said a little breathlessly. “So do you.”
It was then that Skyler noticed Keith was carrying a small bouquet of flowers. Skyler stared at the blossoms as Keith stretched his arm forward, offering them.
“You brought me flowers.” He felt his face warming.
Keith’s cheek dented with a smile. “Yeah. Corny, I know. But I wanted to.”
Skyler took them since there didn’t seem to be anything else he could do. He held them awkwardly in his hands, the cellophane crackling under his fingers.
Keith chuckled and walked in. “Got a vase?” He headed into the kitchen and began opening cupboards.
“Uh…top shelf above the fridge.”
Keith reached it easily, something Skyler needed a step stool to do. He pulled out a vase and set it on the counter. He looked expectantly at Skyler before Skyler got the message and laid the flowers beside it, unwrapping the cellophane. He disassembled the bunch, trimmed the stems with scissors from a drawer, and arranged them in the vase. He took the whole thing to the sink, filled the vase with water and set it on his counter. He stared at it and wondered at the funny feeling in his stomach. No one had ever brought him flowers before. Not like this. His mother on 26 Haley Walsh
occasion, and Jamie when he was sick, but not like this.
He turned to look at Keith.
The dark-haired man was scanning the room. “Nice place,”
he said, swiveling back to gaze at Skyler.
“Thank you for the flowers. They’re…very nice.”
That smile was back. “Not used to getting flowers, huh? Well maybe you should get used to it.” He pushed a wisp of hair off of Skyler’s forehead, trailing his finger down Skyler’s face to his jaw. “Shall we go?”
§ §
“Saturday?” He had planned on calling his friends and maybe going to Trixx again. But the only reason to do that was to get laid, so… “Saturday night would be fine.”
“Pick you up at eight?”
Skyler nodded and gave Keith his address. This felt weird.
Was this what heteros felt before a first date? All fluttery inside?
He watched Keith climb into his truck, then turned toward his white VW Bug and hit the button on his key to unlock it.
He got home fast. He speed-dialed Sidney to tell her and she squealed appropriately. He joked and laughed with her as he always did, but when he clicked off the phone, he chewed his lip.
Pick-ups in bars didn’t exactly prepare him for the subtlety of a date.
§ § §
Early Saturday evening, he showered. He chose his clothes carefully, going with a Hugo Boss gray sweater to match his eyes and khaki slacks, hoping that it wasn’t a fancier place Keith had in mind. As he brushed his long platinum bangs off his face, he wondered if Keith planned on paying for dinner. If you asked, you paid, right? But that was weird, too. That wouldn’t feel right. “What’s the matter with me?” And why wasn’t his hair cooperating? “Any red-blood American gay boy would love having a sugar daddy. Why not let him pay?”
Because it felt odd. He’d always paid his own way; helping to support his mom at home once he was of age and paying for his own schooling. It didn’t feel right letting someone else foot the bill now. He’d just tell Keith. Yeah. They’d split the bill. That was only right.
Although it did feel nice that someone might want to do this Foxe hunt 25
for him.
The doorbell. He straightened his baby-fine hair one more time and went to the door. When he pulled it open, he remembered why he had first thought of Keith as a Walking Wet Dream.
He was wearing a maroon dress shirt under his black leather jacket. His shirt was open at the collar revealing a tan triangle of skin and curly dark hair. He still had that sexy one day of beard growth and he was looking at Skyler with those captivating eyes and smiling lips. And he smelled good, too. What was that?
Unforgivable ?
Keith measured Skyler up and down with a grin. “You look great.”
“Thanks,” he said a little breathlessly. “So do you.”
It was then that Skyler noticed Keith was carrying a small bouquet of flowers. Skyler stared at the blossoms as Keith stretched his arm forward, offering them.
“You brought me flowers.” He felt his face warming.
Keith’s cheek dented with a smile. “Yeah. Corny, I know. But I wanted to.”
Skyler took them since there didn’t seem to be anything else he could do. He held them awkwardly in his hands, the cellophane crackling under his fingers.
Keith chuckled and walked in. “Got a vase?” He headed into the kitchen and began opening cupboards.
“Uh…top shelf above the fridge.”
Keith reached it easily, something Skyler needed a step stool to do. He pulled out a vase and set it on the counter. He looked expectantly at Skyler before Skyler got the message and laid the flowers beside it, unwrapping the cellophane. He disassembled the bunch, trimmed the stems with scissors from a drawer, and arranged them in the vase. He took the whole thing to the sink, filled the vase with water and set it on his counter. He stared at it and wondered at the funny feeling in his stomach. No one had ever brought him flowers before. Not like this. His mother on 26 Haley Walsh
occasion, and Jamie when he was sick, but not like this.
He turned to look at Keith.
The dark-haired man was scanning the room. “Nice place,”
he said, swiveling back to gaze at Skyler.
“Thank you for the flowers. They’re…very nice.”
That smile was back. “Not used to getting flowers, huh? Well maybe you should get used to it.” He pushed a wisp of hair off of Skyler’s forehead, trailing his finger down Skyler’s face to his jaw. “Shall we go?”
§ §
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